Must See: A Saving Berth at Sea

Brent and Craig Renaud have produced a remarkably intimate and detailed look at the challenges faced by rescuers in Haiti, from the vantage of the U.S. Naval Ship Comfort, a hospital ship anchored off Port-au-Prince. The video takes us inside the ship, where the crew works around the clock to save the lives of those injured in the quake. But we also learn about the difficulties of logistics on the ground, when it becomes clear that the lawn of the ideally situated National Palace cannot be used as a military heliport — to airlift the injured and dying to the ship — because the symbolism is so politically fraught. The scenes aboard the ship are heart-rending. We meet Corpsman Christopher Brossard, a Haitian-American who comforts a severely injured woman whose foot almost certainly has to be amputated. Scenes are expertly composed and moments that might otherwise be gruesome are infused with a tragic tenderness. These moments can be hard to watch, but they are a necessary part of telling a story like this one. (E.O.)

The city of Jacmel lies about 25 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince. Known as a cultural hub, Jacmel is the location of the Ciné Institute, a school for young filmmakers and journalists. The city was severely damaged. Many died. After the quake, some students began documenting the destruction, which included the school itself. The students interviewed residents and one another. A Vimeo channel showing the students’ videos has brought needed attention to the town. The videos are raw and often unsteady. Some contain images that are difficult to watch. But they are in many ways a relief from the tightly produced news accounts. In this video, one girl recalls that when the tremors began, she first thought that her cellphone was vibrating. Such first-person accounts are an important part of the earthquake’s history; perhaps more important than some of the reports we see on television. (E.O.)

Stephen Digges and the World Information Resources Collective provide some of the best pieces on the VJ Movement site (“Must See,” Nov. 13). Following civil unrest in Kenya in 2007, Mr. Digges and his crew spent more than a year documenting the plight of the nation’s internally displaced people. This chapter profiles three women who have turned to prostitution as a means of supporting their families. Mr. Digges finds the right balance of creative, yet unobtrusive, framing and composition. Rough audio moments and loose camera handling provide a sense of immediacy. As intended, these short videos give voices to the voiceless and dignity to those whose lives have been upended. (K.B.)

“It starts here, with a lackluster establishing shot of a significant location.” And so begins Charlie Brooker’s witty deconstruction of the mechanics behind a two-minute news spot. The producer’s bag of tricks is opened and scathingly examined: the meaningless “vox pop” interviews, indecipherable animated graphics, compressed telephoto shots of headless pedestrians milling about. (That it’s done in 1 minute, 59 seconds — on the dot — should earn a kudos from anyone who has ever worked in broadcast news!) (K.B.)